[Social media users, including celebrities Demi Lovato and Gracie Abrams, have taken to Instagram to express frustration that Meta won’t let them unfollow President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and First Lady Melania Trump’s accounts. Many have reported that their attempts to unfollow the accounts have been unsuccessful, with Meta automatically refollowing them.
Gracie Abrams explained on her Instagram story that she had to unfollow the @vp and @potus accounts three times before being able to block them. Demi Lovato also shared her experience, stating, “I have unfollowed this guy twice today.”
In response to the issue, Meta’s spokesperson Andy Stone claimed that the company did not force users to follow the official accounts of the President, Vice President, or First Lady, and that this is the same procedure the company followed during the last presidential transition. Stone explained that the accounts for the president, vice president, and first lady change with every administration, and it may take some time for follow and unfollow requests to be processed as these accounts are updated.
This incident comes as a growing concern for some liberal users who have been critical of the recent right-wing shift within Meta. In the lead-up to President Trump’s inauguration, Meta replaced its top policy executive with a prominent Republican and named a Trump ally to its board of directors. The company has also stopped using third-party fact-checking programs and relaxed its policies on harmful and hateful content.
Despite Meta’s efforts to clarify the situation, many users remain skeptical about the company’s intentions and are encouraging others to unfollow the Trump administration’s accounts if they don’t support their policies.
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